Castro determined to earn job as Astros' starting catcher

Jason Castro is improving his swing, and the Astros like his preparation and how he handles pitchers.

Photo: Karen Warren

VIERA, Fla. - Jason Castro coiled in his stance and took aim at the batting-practice fastball.

Crack!

The ball flew over the right-field wall of Space Coast Stadium. Castro lashed the next pitch sharply to right-center field, ending that particular round in the batting cage, and received a fist bump from Astros hitting coach Mike Barnett.

The next round produced similar crisp contact, allowing Castro to leave the cage with a satisfied smile.

"Man," Barnett told him, "that's nice."

Barely a year after the knee injury that cost him the 2011 season, Castro, 24, again is trying to establish himself as the Astros' regular catcher. He looks around and sees up-and-coming Astros such as first baseman Jonathan Singleton and center fielder George Springer, and it's another reminder he has yet to prove himself worthy of the first-round pick and $2 million signing bonus invested in him in 2008.

"Baseball is big that way - there's a lot of turnover," Castro said. "There's always that next guy coming up to take your spot. I see guys in their first camp here, and it reminds me of when I was in my first camp. It's kind of a cool thing. I definitely have taken in a lot and grown a lot."

To avoid brooding too much over time lost last year, Castro tried to lose himself in his rehabilitation. Surgery to remove the sesamoid bone in his left foot this past December forced Castro to take on yet another form of rehab entering spring training. Castro said he's "in a good place" physically after all that work, eager to show the results of a project he'd begun after the 2010 season.

Swing shifts

Castro batted .205 with a sickly .573 on-base-plus-slugging percentage as a rookie, infrequently hitting the ball with the sort of authority a 6-3, 205-pounder should generate. He tended to lead his lefthanded swing with the front foot coming down early, creating a lunging effect that sapped him of his power.

"I'm really starting to get comfortable with those changes I made now that I'm able to hit on a regular basis," Castro said. "I'm really excited. It puts me in a better place to hit, frees me up to put more consistently good swings on the ball."

Castro went 2-for-3 - hitting the ball up the middle sharply twice - Wednesday against the Philadelphia Phillies. In an 8-0 defeat to the Washington Nationals on Thursday, Castro had one of three Astros hits.

"Sometimes when you have an injury like he had, it's almost like a blessing in disguise," Barnett said. "Now he's slowing things down. He's hitting with more rhythm. I would hate to put numbers on (what it could mean) right now, but I think it's just going to allow him to not have to be so perfect timing-wise on every pitch. It allows him to adjust to more pitches."

Castro's bread and butter is his ability to handle himself behind the plate. On top of throwing out 37 percent of opposing base stealers (18-of-49) in 2010, Castro was tireless in his game-planning for Astros pitchers.

Student of the game

The Astros had a 3.92 ERA when Castro was behind the plate that season and 4.09 overall. Despite the injury last season, he remained engaged in studying the tendencies of pitchers and opposing hitters.

"What a great kid he is," manager Brad Mills said. "He is always learning, trying to get better, looking at pitchers' stuff. He's not just going through the motions. He's preparing everything – offensively, defensively, whatever."

Castro tried to take the extra time he had to watch and use it to his advantage. He tried to slow the game in his mind, to make it not seem as difficult as it can in the heat of competition. He took note of the sort of adjustments opposing pitchers made with young Astros hitters. Still, even a Stanford-educated catcher can bear to think only so much.

"You can definitely overanalyze this game," Castro said. "That's where you need to be careful. You've got to trust your skills, your talent."

And body.

"I just want to come out and No. 1, stay healthy," Castro said. "But I also want to show that I'm here to stay and can play up here every day and be an important piece of this team."

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